Small farmers see better access to credit with eco-certification

Participation in agricultural certification programs appears to boost access to credit for small farmers, asserts a study published by the Rainforest Alliance, an environmental group that sets up and implements eco-certification standards. The study, published in September and titled Farmer Bankability and Sustainable Finance: Farm-Level Metrics that Matter , is based on surveys of 110 smallholder coffee and cocoa producers in Colombia and Peru. 63 of the farms are certified by the Rainforest Alliance. It found that, on average, certified producers received more loans for larger amounts than non-certified producers. "The average dollar value of the loans to certified producers was $5,562, compared with $3,311 for non-certified ones," said the Rainforest Alliance. "Certified producers received 1.36 loans on average each year, compared with 0.66 for non-certified ones. Certi...